There is still time to register online for this year’s ALS User Meeting. With 4 keynote talks [James Murphy (DOE), Michael Eisen (UC Berkeley), James Krupnick (LBNL), and Jamie Cate (UC Berkeley)], 6 science highlights, 13 workshops, and 27 exhibitors, we are breaking all sorts of meeting records. View the finalized agenda and workshops, and register now!
Analyses of ancient concrete samples pinpointed why the best Roman concrete was superior to most modern concrete in durability, why its manufacture was less environmentally damaging, and how these improvements could be adopted in the modern world. Read more…
Initial tests of a new pseudo-single-bunch (PSB) operational mode at the ALS have shown promising results–PSB would vastly expand the facility’s capacity to carry out dynamics and time-of-flight experiments with a major reduction in sample damage. Read more…
Ring Leader: Deborah Smith, User Office Senior Administrator
ALS users and staff are all familiar with the welcoming smile of Deborah Smith in the User Office as she guides users through the administrative processes to get them ready for their beam time. Although these days much of her work life revolves around organizing the annual ALS User Meeting (which is fast approaching October 7-9), she has a lot of other responsibilities to the user community on her plate year-round. Read how Deborah and her team manage the many aspects of user “customer service” at the ALS.
Industry@ALS: Environmental Remediation Gets Fired Up with Biochar
Using ALS Beamlines 10.3.2 and 8.3.2, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is currently investigating how biochar sorbs environmental toxins and which kinds of biochar are the most effective. The possibilities for widespread use have already launched entrepreneurial commercial ventures. Read more…
Explore Berkeley Lab and the ALS Via a New Interactive Map
Berkeley Lab can be a confusing place for first-time visitors and long-time employees alike, so Berkeley Lab’s Information Technology Division and the Public Affairs Department teamed up to create a new interactive map. It’s designed for anyone who wants to learn more about Berkeley Lab and navigate from place to place. The map can be viewed on computers and smart phones—take a look!
Who’s in the News: Visitors and Awards
Recent visitors to the ALS included Joachim Sauer, professor of Theoretical Chemistry at Humboldt University in Berlin, Wang Junming, the new counselor for Science and Technology at the Chinese Consulate, and Helmut Schwarz, president of the Humboldt Foundation. Read more about these and other visitors, and see all their photos at the ALS…
Events
ALS Science Café Friday, November 1 @ 12 noon, User Support Building, 15-253
Speakers and topics for the next science café include Marie Jackson (Roman concrete), Greg Hura (DNA labelled with gold), and Dave Robin (Pseudo-single bunch.
…..considered running for the Users’ Executive Committee? The UEC represents the interests of all ALS users, communicating concerns and needs of the users to ALS management and to the DOE, as well as providing a means for ALS management to communicate plans and changes at the ALS to the user community. Next year will be a very interesting time to serve on the UEC, as discussions about a possible diffraction-limited source upgrade to the ALS continue to shape the future of science at the ALS.
Elections will be held for new members starting at the ALS User Meeting (October 7-9). There will be 5 members leaving the UEC at the end of this year, so we need a large slate of candidates.
We look forward to seeing all of you at the User Meeting next month!
All users are welcome to contact their UEC representatives to raise issues of concern relating to their own research, or to alert us to issues facing our whole community.
For the user runs from August 19 to September 16, 2013 (which included a scheduled extended shutdown and two user weeks in 2-Bunch Mode), the beam reliability [(time scheduled – time lost)/time scheduled)] was 95.6%. For this period, the mean time between failures (MTBF) was 58.3 hours, and the mean time to recovery (MTTR) was 172 minutes. On September 6, the failure of a power supply within the crowbar cabinet of the SRRF system resulted in the loss of nearly 11 hours of user beam time (during 2-Bunch Mode operations).
More detailed information on reliability is available on the ALS reliability bulletin board, which is located in the hallway between the ALS and the control room in Building 80. Questions about beam reliability should be directed to Dave Richardson (DBRichardson@lbl.gov, x4376).
There is still time to register online for this year’s ALS User Meeting. With 4 keynote talks [James Murphy (DOE), Michael Eisen (UC Berkeley), James Krupnick (LBNL), and Jamie Cate (UC Berkeley)], 6 science highlights, 13 workshops, and 27 exhibitors, we are breaking all sorts of meeting records. 
Analyses of ancient concrete samples pinpointed why the best Roman concrete was superior to most modern concrete in durability, why its manufacture was less environmentally damaging, and how these improvements could be adopted in the modern world. 
Initial tests of a new pseudo-single-bunch (PSB) operational mode at the ALS have shown promising results–PSB would vastly expand the facility’s capacity to carry out dynamics and time-of-flight experiments with a major reduction in sample damage. 
ALS users and staff are all familiar with the welcoming smile of Deborah Smith in the User Office as she guides users through the administrative processes to get them ready for their beam time. 
Using ALS Beamlines 10.3.2 and 8.3.2, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is currently investigating how biochar sorbs environmental toxins and which kinds of biochar are the most effective. The possibilities for widespread use have already launched entrepreneurial commercial ventures. 
Berkeley Lab can be a confusing place for first-time visitors and long-time employees alike, so Berkeley Lab’s Information Technology Division and the Public Affairs Department teamed up to create a new interactive map. It’s designed for anyone who wants to learn more about Berkeley Lab and navigate from place to place. 
Recent visitors to the ALS included 
ALS in the News
